Which Exposure Mode Do You Use and Why?

[sportyaccordy]

Aperture priority mode for me. I started shooting well into the digital era (2006 or so) so I had no ties to all manual film cameras. Was never super picky about shutter speeds in most situations, but DoF control mattered. So it's just a habit that stuck. I can go fully manual but only when necessary; I don't find much joy or accomplishment in having "full control" as it's often not necessary for the shooting I do.

 

[jrkliny]

I vary my exposure control according to the type of shot I am making. With newer and better sensors and software, it is not an issue to shoot at higher ISOs.

With my camera I get great results between ISO 100 to 6400. Those are my default ranges for AutoISO. I often shoot images such as landscapes with aperture priority and AutoISO. Aperture priority allows me to rapidly adjust DOF. The AutoISO algorithms doe a great job of balancing ISO with the appropriate shutter speed for the focal length in use.

For sports, birds, wildlife, kids and any action images, I switch to shutter speed priority and adjust manually considering the focal length and motion of the subjects. Again AutoISO does a great job of balancing aperture and ISO settings.

A lot of my non-travel shooting is photography of flowers and other botanicals. Almost all of that work is done with a handheld speedlite to control the lighting. I shoot full manual typically at 1/250, the highest flash sinc speed, and aperture f/20 to maximize DOF. I vary the ISO to balance front and backlighting. I shoot with the sun providing backlight and the flash providing fill light or the reverse with the flash providing the backlight as show in my example. In either case I manually adjust the ISO to balance the lighting.

I stick with a center weighted metering mode. The interpretive algorithms often give unpredictable results. With center weighted, I can adjust the exposure compensation as needed. Initially I used the histogram to make that adjustment but with some practice I can make the adjustment in advance. At one time we were encouraged to "shoot to the right"; i.e. maximum light just short of blowing highlights. Since cameras now provide excellent dynamic range, I typically shoot more towards the left and pull up the brightness in post. My default settings are -1/3 for exposure comp and -2/3 for flash comp.

Again the choice of camera settings is dependent on the exact image and lighting.









--
Jim, aka camperjim

Special Places Photography

This site contains fine art photographs. Most are available for sale as prints either plain, matted, or framed. Subjects include nature, flowers, and landscapes. Many of the landscapes are from the major American National Parks, including Death Valley, Yellowstone, Arches, Canyonlands...

www.specialplacesphoto.com

 

[BGD300V1]

but, I do think of what I am doing.

P-Mode doesn't do much for me.

Aperture mode for times I want to lock the aperture for DOF purposes.

Shutter mode when I want to be sure to freeze action.

 

[Bill Ferris]

That version indicated 17.7% using manual with most using some form of auto.

Actually, 35% of respondents to that poll indicated shooting manual. The largest group among the respondents were the 45% who shoot aperture priority.

I thought that this thread seemed to indicate the majority using manual. I may be mistaken, as I did not try to count how many indicated which.

Most of those who've responded to this thread have indicated using more than one exposure mode.

 

[Bill Ferris]

Thanks for sharing your approach.

 

[Bob A L]

I don't see it that way. On my cameras if I set aperture and shutter speed manually, but allow my camera free access to choose the iso, it has complete automatic control of the brightness of my photos as they are produced by the processor in the camera and saved as jpegs. Only if I want to post process my images would I have any manual control of the observed image brightness.

 

[Bill Ferris]

I don't see it that way. On my cameras if I set aperture and shutter speed manually, but allow my camera free access to choose the iso, it has complete automatic control of the brightness of my photos as they are produced by the processor in the camera and saved as jpegs.

In the scenario you describe, you're manually controlling exposure through f-stop and shutter speed. The camera is controlling JPEG lightness through its selection of ISO.

Only if I want to post process my images would I have any manual control of the observed image brightness.

The exposure compensation (EC) setting you've chosen manages image lightness. A setting of 0 is generally a reflection of being satisfied with the camera's choice of ISO. Negative or positive EC settings will push ISO section lower or raise it higher, respectively.

 

[Bob A L]

I don't see it that way. On my cameras if I set aperture and shutter speed manually, but allow my camera free access to choose the iso, it has complete automatic control of the brightness of my photos as they are produced by the processor in the camera and saved as jpegs.

In the scenario you describe, you're manually controlling exposure through f-stop and shutter speed. The camera is controlling JPEG lightness through its selection of ISO.

We agree here, except to clarify I'm controlling the amount of light that hits the sensor. And then the camera is controlling JPEG lightness through its selection of ISO. And what the camera is controlling is the lightness of the photo that results from its ISO decision. Which is the only place I can determine the exposure used to create the photo. I have no way of seeing the amount of light that hit the sensor. A photo must be created by the camera's processing for me to determine the exposure of my photo. And I really don't care how much light hits the sensor, I only care what the exposure as exhibited in the photo created by the camera looks like.

Only if I want to post process my images would I have any manual control of the observed image brightness.

The exposure compensation (EC) setting you've chosen manages image lightness. A setting of 0 is generally a reflection of being satisfied with the camera's choice of ISO. Negative or positive EC settings will push ISO section lower or raise it higher, respectively.

Again we agree. EC only biases the calibration of the camera's metering system. I can choose to make things brighter or darker than default as dictated by the camera's inbuilt metering and processing, but EC cannot change the exposure itself.

 

[Ed B]

Shutter priority for fast moving subjects, Aperture priority if I want to intentionally blur the background, but most often I'll simply shoot in Program mode.

I'm more interested in the editing/post-processing portion of photography, so keep things simple when shooting.

99.9% of the time I use auto ISO, and I can't remember the last time I tried to outsmart the camera and use manual.

Naturally, after being a member of DPR for over 20-years, I've never claimed to be a good photographer, so you probably shouldn't follow my example.

 

[Bill Ferris]

I don't see it that way. On my cameras if I set aperture and shutter speed manually, but allow my camera free access to choose the iso, it has complete automatic control of the brightness of my photos as they are produced by the processor in the camera and saved as jpegs.

In the scenario you describe, you're manually controlling exposure through f-stop and shutter speed. The camera is controlling JPEG lightness through its selection of ISO.

We agree here, except to clarify I'm controlling the amount of light that hits the sensor.

You're controlling the exposure. By definition, exposure is the light intensity from the scene per unit area of the sensor. This is determined by the amount of light in the scene, f-stop, and shutter speed.

Exposure times the area of the sensor yields the total amount of light delivered to the sensor.

And then the camera is controlling JPEG lightness through its selection of ISO. And what the camera is controlling is the lightness of the photo that results from its ISO decision. Which is the only place I can determine the exposure used to create the photo.

Whatever process you use to evaluate exposure, make a decision about whether or not it's to your liking, and determine which combination of changes to shutter speed or f-stop to make to optimize exposure, that doesn't change the fact that exposure is determined by scene brightness, f-stop and shutter speed. ISO has no direct affect.

I have no way of seeing the amount of light that hit the sensor. A photo must be created by the camera's processing for me to determine the exposure of my photo. And I really don't care how much light hits the sensor, I only care what the exposure as exhibited in the photo created by the camera looks like.

Your usage of the term, exposure, is not consistent with the meaning of the term. You use it to describe the lightness of a photo. That's not it's meaning in photography...hasn't been for many generations.

Of course, you're free to use language as you see fit. That said, if you continue using the term to mean something it isn't, other DPR members will continue to correct that usage.

Only if I want to post process my images would I have any manual control of the observed image brightness.

The exposure compensation (EC) setting you've chosen manages image lightness. A setting of 0 is generally a reflection of being satisfied with the camera's choice of ISO. Negative or positive EC settings will push ISO section lower or raise it higher, respectively.

Again we agree. EC only biases the calibration of the camera's metering system. I can choose to make things brighter or darker than default as dictated by the camera's inbuilt metering and processing, but EC cannot change the exposure itself.

Correct. EC influences exposure in a manner similar to how ISO influences exposure, it's impact on the camera's choice of the two exposure settings: f-stop and shutter speed.

However, you may have missed the point of my comment. You seemed to say that in manual plus auto-ISO, you have no ability to change image lightness. Was that your intent?

If so, EC allows you to manage the ISO used. You can also switch between different metering modes to exert influence on the camera's choice of ISO. It's not something that can be altered only in post.

 

[Bill Ferris]

Thanks for sharing your aporoach. One of the nice things about digital, is that it costs little more than time for someone who's unsure how to get the results they want to try a method used successfully by another photographer. My hope is that a person struggling with that issue will read the responses, find a couple of approaches to try, and find an exposure mode & workflow that works for them.

 

[Bob A L]

I'll just settle for accepting that I have been using the term wrong for 65+ years of making photos. Whether a photo exhibits dead on exposure, underexposure, or overexposure has always been judged by observing the photo in its final form as processed. This has been true for prints, slides, or digital imaging viewing options. The data provided by the sensor itself is not a photo by any stretch of the imagination, nor is a piece of unprocessed film. Either of them must be processed by man or machine in order to make a photograph, then based on results of that processing we can view and judge the photograph to decide if it is properly exposed to our liking or not.

 

[Fogel70]

70% - Aperture priority (with manual or auto ISO). When there is plenty of light and no major reason for controlling anything else than aperture. Then there is also the option to set minimum shutter speed for auto ISO for fast moving subjects, but then it becomes more like manual mode with auto-ISO, but for plenty of light it has the advantage of shutter speed going faster than minimum if ISO bottoms out at the lowest setting.

25% - Manual mode (with manual or auto ISO). When there is challenging light situations (low light, difficult light for the metering, or when using flash) and I have to be careful with shutter speed and aperture settings. Sometimes in combination with spot metering.

5% - Bulb and other modes...

 

[Bill Ferris]

Thanks for sharing the exposure modes you use and the breakdown in frequency.

 

[Bill Ferris]

Thanks for contributing your approach.

 

[dronahill]

My three saved profiles all have the same focus settings etc but one is full manual, while two are AP with auto iso (up to 12800) and minimum shutter speeds of 1/250 and 1/500. I switch between all three depending on what I'm shooting, how consistent the light is, etc. But when I'm using one of the AP modes I'm often using exposure compensation quite a bit, and have it assigned to one of the 'wheels' for super-quick access.

All I'd say is that used in this way, there really isn't that much difference between full manual and AP. With AP used like this, you sacrifice a tiny bit of fine decision-making (eg reduce shutter speed or bump ISO?) for some extra speed - the camera basically gets you in a decent starting position when light conditions are unpredictable by second-guessing some of the choices you would make if you were in full manual, according to rules you have set.

When light is consistent and I'm shooting a lot of high-contrast stuff I often find manual to be simpler and quicker - I don't have to keep dialling in exposure compensation. If light is flat or I'm shooting more 'reportage' style, where I don't want to miss something because my settings were out, I prefer AP. But they are both means to an end, and it really does depend on the circumstances which one is 'best' for me.

 

[VS80]

Aperture priority and auto iso unless there is a situation that includes action shots.

Mostly out of habit after 40 years shooting my F3 in aperture priority.

 

[jrtrent]

I wish this had been a poll so it would be easy to keep score. I would not have guessed that with the sophistication of today's equipment and metering plus the high level of gear used by most in these forums that more than a very small minority would be still using manual for exposure mode. Just goes to show how little of this modern tech is really needed or used among this group of photography enthusiasts.

I personally really love the accuracy provided by the metering and exposure automation in today's equipment and would not want to go back to the old school manual exposure methods of the past. My success ratio is much higher now than it was in the old days of manual only exposure.

Ever since I cheated decades ago by buying a handheld spot meter, manual exposure control has given me the highest success ratio. My dad did pretty darn good just eyeballing it and making his Argus C3 settings from experience. However, with his last camera, a Panasonic FZ35 bridge camera, he happily resorted to just letting the camera do its thing in program mode. He loved the big zoom and just framed a picture and pressed the shutter release, the camera giving him a very satisfying percentage of keepers.

After getting rid of my Samsung DSLR, which had controls that made manual exposure fun, fast, and totally reliable, I'm now an auto-exposure guy using an FZ300 bridge camera. Outdoors I keep the camera at ISO 100 and F/4, use the default multi-segment metering mode, and take what the camera gives me for image brightness. Indoors I switch to program mode (to let the camera choose f/2.8 if it wants) and auto-ISO (with a ceiling of 800). Have to say I'm pretty happy so far with the success ratio this simple point-and-shoot dependence on automation is giving me.

 

[Tim Reidy Productions]

when I have a camera with an S dial I use that mode most often

shutter priority is what I am most comfortable in and am used to working with that mode.

when I have a camera with a Tv dial, I use TAV mode so I can set both aperture and shutter speed and have the iso speed float. I have a bit more control with this method.

Most of my cameras only like M mode for manual only lenses, and outdoor shooting.

the gain or loss of exposure, can break some shots, especially if the scene will not change.

 

[chrisfisheye]

Unless I use the flash or I shoot pano, I always use aperture priority + auto-iso.

• min shutter speed set to auto for a static scene
• otherwise I set a min shutter speed if there are moving subjects.

It fullfills all my needs.

Chris